1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to disc ejecting apparatuses for ejecting a disc by utilizing a pick-up drive motor.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Among prior art disc ejecting apparatuses is one, in which a first power transmission route leading from a pick-up drive motor to a pick-up and a second power transmission route leading from the pick-up drive motor to a disc ejecting mechanism are alternately turned on and off.
With this construction, in response to an eject commanding operation the first power transmission route is turned on, namely the route becomes valid, to restore the pick-up to the initial position, and then as the first power transmission route is tuned off, namely the route is cut off, at the same time the second power transmission route must be turned on to eject the disc. In other words, the disc ejection can not be commenced as soon as the eject commanding operation is done, so that the disc can not be quickly ejected.
The invention was made to solve the above problem, and it has an object of providing a disc ejecting apparatus for ejecting a disc by utilizing a pick-up drive motor, in which the disc ejection can start quickly while restoring the pick-up to the initial position.
In the disc ejecting apparatus according to the invention, a slip mechanism is provided in a first power transmission route leading from a pick-up drive motor to a pickup such that, when a load exceeds a predetermined value, the slip mechanism causes a slip action and cuts off the power transmission from the pick-up drive motor to the pick-up. Also, in a second power transmission route leading from the pick-up drive motor to a disc ejecting mechanism, a switching mechanism operable for selectively turning on and off the second power transmission route is provided such that in response to an eject commanding operation the switching mechanism is turned on, namely positioned into an xe2x80x9conxe2x80x9d state in which the route is turned on, to cause ejection of the disc by the disc ejecting mechanism while causing restoration of the pick-up to the initial position by the pick-up drive motor. After the pick-up has been restored to the initial position, the disc ejection by the disc ejecting mechanism is continued with the slip action of the slip mechanism.
Effectively, an excess load absorbing mechanism for cutting off the power transmission when experiencing a power load in excess of the load in the slip mechanism, is provided in the second power transmission route. With this arrangement, when it is intended to irrationally stop the disc ejection, the excess load absorbing mechanism absorbs the excess torque of the pick-up drive motor and thus prevents damage to the system.
Also, effectively a hold mechanism for holding the switching mechanism in the xe2x80x9conxe2x80x9d state is provided such as to release the switching mechanism from the xe2x80x9conxe2x80x9d state to an xe2x80x9coffxe2x80x9d state in the last stage of the disc ejection of the disc ejecting mechanism. In the xe2x80x9coffxe2x80x9d state, the switching mechanism operates to turn off, namely cut off, the second power transmission route. With this arrangement, the second power transmission route can be automatically turned off, namely cut off, after completion of the disc ejection.
Furthermore, effectively a high voltage supply means for supplying a high voltage to the pick-up drive motor in response to an eject commanding operation, is provided. With this arrangement, in the disc ejection the motor is driven at a higher speed to permit more quicker disc ejection.
In a specific construction of the disc ejecting apparatus according to the invention, a slip mechanism is provided in a first power transmission route leading from a pickup drive motor to a pick-up, and a switching mechanism is provided in a second power transmission route leading from the pick-up drive motor to a disc ejecting mechanism. By doing the eject commanding operation at this time, the pick-up drive motor is started to cause movement of the pick-up toward the initial position. At this time, the switching mechanism is also turned on, namely positioned in the xe2x80x9conxe2x80x9d state to cause operation of the disc ejecting mechanism to effect the disc ejection. When the load in the first power transmission route exceeds a predetermined value or level as a result of the restoration of the pick-up to the initial position, the slip mechanism commences a slip action to cut off the power transmission, while the disc ejecting mechanism continues the disc ejection with the torque of the pick-up drive motor.
An excess load absorbing mechanism for cutting off the power transmission when experiencing a load in excess of the load in the slip mechanism, is provided in the second power transmission route. With this arrangement, when the disc ejection is irrationally stopped, the excess load absorbing mechanism absorbs the torque of the pick-up drive motor to prevent damage to the system.
Furthermore, a hold mechanism is provided to hold an eject knob in a depressed position so as to hold the switching mechanism in the xe2x80x9conxe2x80x9d state and also allow the disc ejecting mechanism to release the eject knob for restoration in the last stage of the disc ejection. With this arrangement, upon completion of the disc ejection the switching mechanism is turned off, namely positioned into an xe2x80x9coffxe2x80x9d state to cut off the second power transmission route.
Still further, a high voltage supply means is provided to supply a high voltage to the pick-up drive motor in response to an eject commanding operation. With this arrangement, the motor is driven at a higher speed to permit still quicker pick-up restoration and disk ejection.